By Jada Vasser
Arts & Scraps program at Brilliant Detroit Brightmoor. Image: Justin Bozynski & Jason Keen
Reusing materials in creative ways is a lifelong obsession for Ang Adamiak – one that led her to launch a nonprofit.
Even though these days she says she’s mostly “in an office writing grants” while her staff is out doing “interesting work,” building partnerships around the sustainable reuse of materials still fuels her.
“We’re always looking for ways that we can be in relationship with other organizations, whether they’re bigger or smaller than us,” she told Planet Detroit.
Peg Upmeyer launched Arts & Scraps in 1989, and Adamiak has served as its executive director since 2018. The organization aims to bring the people of Detroit together by “providing reused materials and educational resources to promote sustainability and creativity.”
The nonprofit serves the community through its Creative Reuse Community Store and educational STEM programs.
And now, Arts & Scrap’s model for reusing materials and reducing waste is part of the city’s effort to combat climate change as part of the Detroit Climate Strategy.
The city awarded Arts & Scraps a $5,000 climate action project grant to reach more families through the nonprofit organization Brilliant Detroit. Arts & Scraps serves 200-250 students in 15 neighborhoods and says the grant will help find additional donors so it can expand to the entire city by 2030.
Adamiak said that each workshop, lesson and event fuels Detroit’s next generation of leaders to understand the importance of sustainability.
“Our goals are to increase their problem-solving, critical thinking, teamwork and communication skills,” Adamiak said. “ Each lesson also features reuse and environmental education, helping us build Detroit’s next generation of environmentalists, designers, tech geniuses, artists, activists and more.”
The project supports the city’s strategic goal of reducing waste by diverting tons from landfills each year.
“We are addressing climate change directly, as well as building community and future leaders that will be equipped to help combat the effects on our communities in the long run,” Adamiak said.
“I am constantly exploring avenues to minimize our reliance on new materials for our classes and workshops,” said Mandisa Smith, the director of art enrichment at Hope for Flowers. “This is where Arts & Scraps plays a crucial role. It’s our primary resource for materials, particularly for our youth art classes.”
Arts & Scraps youth STEM programs aim to help kids meet state standards for math and science. Classes run six, eight or 12 weeks and are tailored to students’ specific needs.
“While we believe that play and craft are important in the world, we are centered around building community and hitting educational benchmarks that make students successful in the long-term,” Adamiak said.
Programs also include student workshops, which allow students to choose one STEM or literacy lesson and create an art project to demonstrate their understanding of the course.
Workshop art projects are centered around reusable materials for repurposing. Students can pull from a “scrap box” filled with sustainable materials for their project.
Arts & Scraps also hosts a Hearts & Scraps monthly “giver club” with an annual Earth Day campaign where community members can support and volunteer at the organization.
Arts and Scraps will celebrate its 35th anniversary on Sept. 14.
Jada Vasser has an environmental reporting internship under the MSU Knight Center for Environmental Journalism’s diversity reporting partnership with GLISA/National Oceanographic & Atmospheric Administration. This story was produced for Planet Detroit.